I heard there is a 2014 extravaganza in the works which focuses more (?) on the Polish Catholic experience. There are some very ugly facts about the Polish occupation that are not readily apparent to us today.

What I like about it is the folklore surrounding the unfortunate destruction of this priceless Hapsburg castle where the scenes were shot. It was located in Slovenia, details are hard to come by. It was destroyed 'by accident' during filming, although further details are quite sketchy.

There are so many plot elements that are great. For one, we have the highly educated and respected company commander, we have a motley group of US draftees representing different ethnic backgrounds & set against a backdrop of the racism of the 1940s. The rich and sophisticated Baron & Baroness (most of whom were collaborators in occupied Europe).

The final destruction of the castle in the costly battle with the Heer.

The enormity of the sacrifice, the cheapness of life, and the fleeting moments of enjoyment of life such as it was in WWII battlefronts is well underscored.

Also the film is a bit pretentious, but this is offset by the relatively innocent feel of the movie due to the censorship standards of the 1960s.

Anyone who wishes to understand what the fuck being a Catholic is all about should watch that amazing Italian movie, for which Omar Shariff was rewarded with death threats, but this is his most amazing prestation ever. This scene shows the soaked in truth speech made by Paul: